Stack of interfolded sheet units



July 10, 1962 P. A. NEMOEDE 3,043,472

STACK OF INTERFOLDED SHEET nuns Filed April 20, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 I fnverzfiar Paul G. Mmmede July 10, 1962 P. A. NEMOEDE 3,043,472

STACK 0F INTERFOLDED SHEET UNITS Filed April 20, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 0 Paul G. fl emoede United States Patent Or fice 3,043,472 Patented July 10, 1962 3,043,472 STACK F INTERFOLDED SHEET UNITS Paul A. Nemoede, Chicago, Ill., assignor to Container Corporation of America, Chicago, 11]., a corporation of Delaware Filed Apr. 20, 1960, Ser. No. 23,402 1 Claim. (Cl. 221-48) This invention relates to new and useful improvements in the art of packaging interfolded sheets so that they may be individually and successively dispensed with the withdrawal of each sheet automatically pulling up the next sheet into a dispensing position.

While it is common in the art to utilize an interfolded sheet arrangement in dispensing packages of tissue paper, and the like, heretofore it was not practical to interfold film-like sheets, such as for example, sheets of Saran, which have a strong tendency to cohere and, therefore, cannot be readily separated to facilitate successive, individual dispensing as above noted.

It is, therefore, the principal object of the invention to facilitate packaging of interfolded sheets such as sheets of Saran for individual dispensing with the withdrawal of each sheet pulling up the next sheet to a dispensing position while preventing cohesion between the interfolded sheets so that each sheet may be readily separated from the next. This object is attained by juxtaposing each Saran sheet with a tissue sheet so that when the sheets are interfolded, the tissue sheets are interposed between the Saran sheets and the latter are thereby prevented from contacting and adhering to one another, thus permitting the sheets to be readily separated as they are successively withdrawn from the package.

It may be noted at this point that while the invention is primarily intended for packaging of Saran, it is by no means limited thereto and the teachings of the invention are applicable to interfolded packaging of sheets in general which, either by virtue of a film-like nature or because of some other characteristic, such as the presence of static electricity, have a tendency to cohere and resist separation.

With the foregoing more important objects and features in view and such other objects and features as may become apparent as this specification proceeds, the invention will be understood from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein like characters of reference are used to designate like parts, and wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a package of interfolded sheets in its closed position;

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary perspective View of the package on an enlarged scale, the package being open and the sheet at the top of the stack in the package being shown in readiness for dispensing;

FIGURE 3 is a plan view of the blank from which the package is formed;

FIGURE 4 is a vertical sectional view taken transversely through the package and illustrating the arrangement of the sheet units; and

FIGURE 5 is a diagrammatical illustration of the arrangement of the sheet units.

Referring now to the accompanying drawings in detail, the general reference number designates a dispensing package containing a stack 11 of interfolded sheet units 12. The package 10 is formed from a suitable blank 10a and includes a top Wall 13 and a pair of end walls 14, the top wall 13 being provided with a pair of spaced lines of weakness 15 whereby portion 16 of the top wall between these lines may be removed to form an elongated dispensing opening 17 in the top wall 13, as will be clearly apparent. The lines of weakness 1-5 are preferably extended into one of the end walls 14 where a when folded upon itself or placed upon another like sheet.

To prevent this adhesion and facilitate proper separation of the interfolded sheets, the sheet unit 12 also includes a separator sheet 12b of tissue, or the like, which is juxtaposed in a manner hereinafter described to the sheet 12a. The separator sheet 1212 is approximately one-third longer than the sheet 12a and is provided. with three zig-zag folds 19, 20, 21 spaced equally between its leading edge 22 and its trailing edge 23, whereby the sheet'12b is divided into a leading panel or layer 24, first and second intermediate panels or layers 25, 26, respectively, and a trailing panel or layer 27.

The sheet 12a is provided with only two zig-Zag folds 28, 29' between its leading edge 30 and its trailing edge 31, whereby it is divided into a leading panel or layer 32, an intermediate panel or layer 33 and a trailing panel or layer 34. The trailing edges 23 and 31 of the respec tive sheet-s 12b and 12a are in alignment, whereby the layers 34,33 and 32 of the sheet 12a are juxtaposed to the respective layers 27, 26 and 25 of the sheet 12b, with the leading edge 30 of the sheet 12a terminating at the first fold 19' of the sheet 12b and the leading layer 24 of thesheet 12b extending beyond the fold 19, as shown.

The sheet units 12 are interfolded by aligning the leading edge 22 of each sheet 12b with the first fold 28 of the sheet 12a of the next preceding unit and juxtaposing the leading layer 24 of the protective sheet 12b of each sheet unit to the intermediate layer 33 of the cohesive sheet 12a of the preceding unit, whereby all the layers of the cohesive sheet 12a of each unit and of adjacent units are separated from contact with one another by the layers of the protective sheet 12b therebetween. Although in FIGURE 5 the leading layer 24 of the protective sheet 1215 has been shown as being juxtaposed to the intermediate layer 33 of the cohesive sheet 12a of the next preceding sheet unit, ineifect it is superposed on the leading layer 32 of the cohesive sheet 12a in its own sheet unit, as is best shown in the lower portion of FIGURE 4 wherein the leading portion of one sheet unit is illustrated as being pulled out of the opening 17 in the package 10 by the trailing portion of the preceding sheet unit during dispensing.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that since the layers of cohesive sheets 12a are separated by the interposed layers of the protective sheets 12b, proper separation of each sheet unit from the next is possible and packaging of interfolded sheet units is thereby facilitated.

While in the foregoing there has been shown and described the preferred embodiment of the invention, various modifications may become apparent to those skilled in the art to which the invention relates. Accordingly, it is not desired to limit the invention to this disclosure and various modifications may be resorted to, such as may lie within the spirit and scope of the appended claim.

What is claimed as new is:

A stack of zig-zag interfolded sheet units adapted for individual unit dispensing; each of said units comprising: a cohesive sheet, either surface of which will cohere to either surface of a sheet of like material; and a protective sheet free from cohesive or adhesive properties relative to itself or said cohesive sheet; each protective sheet having four panels-interconnected by three folds, and each cohesive sheet having one less panel and one less fold than the related protective sheet; the cohesive sheet of each unit being disposed adjacent the related protective sheet with the first, second, and third panels of the former disposed in juxtaposition with the second, third and fourth panels, respectively, of the related protective sheet and the first and second folds of the former disposed in juxtaposition with the second and third folds, respectively, of the latter, whereby the first panel of the cohesive sheet of one unit is interposed between the first and secand panels of the protective sheet of that unit to form a triple thickness first layer, and the third and fourth panels of the protective sheet form with the second and third 10 panels of the cohesive sheet of that unit double thickness second and third layers; and wherein said units are interleaved with adjacent units with the first layer of one unit being interposed between the last and next-to-last layers of the preceding unit so that the surfaces of each cohe- 15 V 1 sive sheet only contact surfaces of a protective sheet in the package.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 820,717 Henke May15, 1906 824,626 Coe June 26, 1906 912,762 Wheeler Feb. 16, 1909 1,088,389 Wheeler Feb. 24, 1914 1,430,709 Wheeler Oct. 3, 1922 2,320,674 Swift June 1, 1943 2,334,536 Broeren et al. Nov. 16, 1943 2,857,047 Edelson Oct. 21, 1958 2,953,293 Anderson Sept. 20, 1960 

